GOP sets up huge target for budget ax

[Two Thumbs]

Closing bases isn't the only way to save money. I've been listening and reading when people talk about dealing with the Pentagon or their time in service on here. There are many, many stories about waste and abuse in the procurement process, not to mention the piles of paperwork that feed the bloated bureaucracy. And just as many laughs over the $300 tool that is absolutely worthless for the task, gets shoved in a locker somewhere and is replaced by a $5 screwdriver the troops pay for out of pocket. Going over the contracts is essential, streamlining the process is also essential, making the process more competitive is absolutely essential.
The other point I would make is that the last war was one we chose, and the Secretary at the time made it a point to go in as "lean" as possible to prove an ideological point. One that failed abysmally. One of these things is not like the other.

Couldn't agree more. I'll tell you about our bronze and plastic screwdrivers we "had" to have, someday.

I don't recall the Afganistan war being our choosing. What war are you talking about?

Yep, presently the Afghan war is a war of our choosing. After all, what have we to gain there? Does the Taliban present a risk to the US? What is the range of their aircraft?

So 9/11 was done by some pissed off boyscouts? The multiple suicide attempts we just jokes? Since they don't have jets they can't kill?

 

[VaYank5150]

Couldn't agree more. I'll tell you about our bronze and plastic screwdrivers we "had" to have, someday.

I don't recall the Afganistan war being our choosing. What war are you talking about?

Yep, presently the Afghan war is a war of our choosing. After all, what have we to gain there? Does the Taliban present a risk to the US? What is the range of their aircraft?

So 9/11 was done by some pissed off boyscouts? The multiple suicide attempts we just jokes? Since they don't have jets they can't kill?

No, the 9/11 attacks were carried out by pissed off terrorists from Saudi Arabia. What's your point?

 

[jillian]

Any more hackery I need to be aware of?

3rd world nation? Have you been even close to one? Do you know how far we would have to go to get there?

not as far as you'd like to think. all it takes is the destruction of the middle class and concentrating wealth in the hands of the very few.

i've seen the armed rifles on the roofs of homes with barbed wire at the top of their fences.

you?

 

[Sallow]

Yep, presently the Afghan war is a war of our choosing. After all, what have we to gain there? Does the Taliban present a risk to the US? What is the range of their aircraft?

So 9/11 was done by some pissed off boyscouts? The multiple suicide attempts we just jokes? Since they don't have jets they can't kill?

No, the 9/11 attacks were carried out by pissed off terrorists from Saudi Arabia. What's your point?

They were trained and funded in Afghanistan. That made them a legitimate target. Add in that the Taliban were asked to surrender Bin Laden and refused.

To be sure..after the initial victory..the Afghan effort fell apart. But it was absolutely essential to break up those camps.

 

[Two Thumbs]

exactly. how do you not curb pentagon spending?? weapons systems that we have no need for... no bid contracts. seems to me that should be the FIRST thing you cut...

so what will they cut? schools? yep.

money they give to the states? yep.

federal agencies? yep. (which is how we ended up with the BP spill.. but that shouldn't deter them, right??)

FTC? yep... let china send in all that lead infected stuff for kids.

heaven forbid they should actually do anything useful.

If the weapon system is useless, it should be sold. If there is a better replacement, for a system that works perfectly, we wasted money on making a better system, and we shouldn't compound the issue by replacing something that works with something that also works.

Schools should get money from thier state only. The Fed has no business getting involved.
The states shoule learn to operate thier own budget.

The BP thing is a good point. but I think that occured more due to low standards than not enough money.

I did like the way China handled the man that sent those toys here.

What would you like them to cut? and don't just say DoD. We are in a war, and major cuts there would actually endanger lives.

ok.. let's talk about the 'war'. does anything change in afghanistan if we stay there five more years? ten? twenty? fifty? time to shut it down, maybe. because no one has conquered afghanistan since alexander the great. If we were not making headway, and the news was encouraging, I'd say it was past time to leave. But the opposite is true. We are winning, the price of freedom is always high. If we leave now, everything will have been for naught, and instead of an ally in the ME, we will have another country that hates us. And will hate us for quitting and what about cost-efficiency? remember $300 toilet seats at the pentagon? Have you ever sat on one of those? It's like making love with that special person. If your special person is a 2 bit whore.

and if we want to talk about wars, i'll point out that baby bush was the only leader in history to cut taxes during time of war. you can't have everything. it has to get paid for. you can't destroy our own infrastructure and our own schools and our own agencies to pay for nation building in iraq and afghanistan.... not to mention that we're already spread too thin... .which brings us back to taxes... which shouldn't have been cut but should go back to the levels they were at when clinton was president. but politicians are wusses... all of them.. .and they're all terrified of saying 'read my lips' and then saying... 'oops.'

you have to pay the piper sometime.

I've been saying that for a LOOONNNG time.

There were a lot of things that coulda shoulda been done. Hind site is 20/20

but today, I'm more concerned about tomorrow.

My all time fav political gaff.

 

[WillowTree]

in other words, they have no intention of cutting anything that would actually have an effect.

A penny saved is a penny earned. I know money don't mean shit to libturds cause it's someone else's money they're always spending but if you can save me a few bucks here and there I'd greatly appreciate it.. So your arguement as usual is just talking points bullshit. .... with deflection thrown in.

 

[Sallow]

The "Tax Compromise" puts to bed the notion that Republicans really embrace austerity or fiscal conservatism. Basically they are just engaging in double speak. They talk about cutting items that don't really do much to curtail spending, hurt the poor and "sound" good to the base.

 

[Two Thumbs]

Yep, presently the Afghan war is a war of our choosing. After all, what have we to gain there? Does the Taliban present a risk to the US? What is the range of their aircraft?

So 9/11 was done by some pissed off boyscouts? The multiple suicide attempts we just jokes? Since they don't have jets they can't kill?

No, the 9/11 attacks were carried out by pissed off terrorists from Saudi Arabia. What's your point?

All of whom were members of Al-queda. And the leaders of Al-Q came from the Taliban and share territory.

 

[Missourian]

The Democrats had their shot...a super majority in Congress AND the Presidency.

Why didn't they cut the military's budget?

The only military related story I recall off the top of my head from the last two years is the Democrats FORCING the military to buy planes the Pentagon made clear the neither needed or wanted.

 

[goldcatt]

I agree with you. BUT, that is not how it's done. The last time the DoD fell under the ax, servicemen and women lost thier jobs, most of it done illegally, and we were not fully prepared for the next war. Everyone does what's easiest, get rid of people, not the hard stuff like; close overseas ports and bases, fine tune the equipment we use, limit the doubling of things, go over contracts so we are not paying $400 for a toilet seat or $250 for a hamer, or $800 for a bronz screwdriver.

Closing bases isn't the only way to save money. I've been listening and reading when people talk about dealing with the Pentagon or their time in service on here. There are many, many stories about waste and abuse in the procurement process, not to mention the piles of paperwork that feed the bloated bureaucracy. And just as many laughs over the $300 tool that is absolutely worthless for the task, gets shoved in a locker somewhere and is replaced by a $5 screwdriver the troops pay for out of pocket. Going over the contracts is essential, streamlining the process is also essential, making the process more competitive is absolutely essential.
The other point I would make is that the last war was one we chose, and the Secretary at the time made it a point to go in as "lean" as possible to prove an ideological point. One that failed abysmally. One of these things is not like the other.

Couldn't agree more. I'll tell you about our bronze and plastic screwdrivers we "had" to have, someday.

I don't recall the Afganistan war being our choosing. What war are you talking about?

The last war was Iraq.

I actually supported Afghanistan, but what happened after that is probably a different thread.

 

[Two Thumbs]

Any more hackery I need to be aware of?

3rd world nation? Have you been even close to one? Do you know how far we would have to go to get there?

not as far as you'd like to think. all it takes is the destruction of the middle class and concentrating wealth in the hands of the very few.

i've seen the armed rifles on the roofs of homes with barbed wire at the top of their fences.

you?

Wandered through Egypt.

I think you're combining anarchy with living in a 3rd world.

3rd world countries lack most of what we take for granted. Like running water that's not in a river. Hot water that isn't over a fire. Drinkable water. No mud huts

etc etc..

 

[goldcatt]

The Democrats had their shot...a super majority in Congress AND the Presidency.

Why didn't they cut the military's budget?

The only military related story I recall off the top of my head from the last two years is the Democrats FORCING the military to buy planes the Pentagon made clear the neither needed or wanted.

They didn't touch it for the same reason the Repubilcans won't, and they were wrong too. There's too much pork, too much patronage and too much emotion tied up in military expenditures.

 

[jillian]

Any more hackery I need to be aware of?

3rd world nation? Have you been even close to one? Do you know how far we would have to go to get there?

not as far as you'd like to think. all it takes is the destruction of the middle class and concentrating wealth in the hands of the very few.

i've seen the armed rifles on the roofs of homes with barbed wire at the top of their fences.

you?

Wandered through Egypt.

I think you're combining anarchy with living in a 3rd world.

3rd world countries lack most of what we take for granted. Like running water that's not in a river. Hot water that isn't over a fire. Drinkable water. No mud huts

etc etc..

i don't think i'd consider egypt a third world country.

try lima, peru. beautiful if you have the money ...

not so much if you don't.

and barbed wire ...

and armed guards...

and lots and lots of upset poor people.

 

[jillian]

The Democrats had their shot...a super majority in Congress AND the Presidency.

Why didn't they cut the military's budget?

The only military related story I recall off the top of my head from the last two years is the Democrats FORCING the military to buy planes the Pentagon made clear the neither needed or wanted.

They didn't touch it for the same reason the Repubilcans won't, and they were wrong too. There's too much pork, too much patronage and too much emotion tied up in military expenditures.

can you imagine if the democrats tried to cut the military budget. i can just hear them screaming about how the dems are supporting terrorists and weaking the country.

maybe if they stopped using that as a litmus test??

 

[Two Thumbs]

Closing bases isn't the only way to save money. I've been listening and reading when people talk about dealing with the Pentagon or their time in service on here. There are many, many stories about waste and abuse in the procurement process, not to mention the piles of paperwork that feed the bloated bureaucracy. And just as many laughs over the $300 tool that is absolutely worthless for the task, gets shoved in a locker somewhere and is replaced by a $5 screwdriver the troops pay for out of pocket. Going over the contracts is essential, streamlining the process is also essential, making the process more competitive is absolutely essential.
The other point I would make is that the last war was one we chose, and the Secretary at the time made it a point to go in as "lean" as possible to prove an ideological point. One that failed abysmally. One of these things is not like the other.

Couldn't agree more. I'll tell you about our bronze and plastic screwdrivers we "had" to have, someday.

I don't recall the Afganistan war being our choosing. What war are you talking about?

The last war was Iraq.

I actually supported Afghanistan, but what happened after that is probably a different thread.

They both slipped into a grind. Most will call it nation building, I call it not leaving people in such a lurch that they end up hating us.

 

[Two Thumbs]

not as far as you'd like to think. all it takes is the destruction of the middle class and concentrating wealth in the hands of the very few.

i've seen the armed rifles on the roofs of homes with barbed wire at the top of their fences.

you?

Wandered through Egypt.

I think you're combining anarchy with living in a 3rd world.

3rd world countries lack most of what we take for granted. Like running water that's not in a river. Hot water that isn't over a fire. Drinkable water. No mud huts

etc etc..

i don't think i'd consider egypt a third world country.

try lima, peru. beautiful if you have the money ...

not so much if you don't.

and barbed wire ...

and armed guards...

and lots and lots of upset poor people.

Get away form the ports and the Pyramids. Yeah, it's hard living.

In America, if all you have are haves and have nots, there will be more problems than can be handled by wire and some men with guns.

 

[goldcatt]

The Democrats had their shot...a super majority in Congress AND the Presidency.

Why didn't they cut the military's budget?

The only military related story I recall off the top of my head from the last two years is the Democrats FORCING the military to buy planes the Pentagon made clear the neither needed or wanted.

They didn't touch it for the same reason the Repubilcans won't, and they were wrong too. There's too much pork, too much patronage and too much emotion tied up in military expenditures.

can you imagine if the democrats tried to cut the military budget. i can just hear them screaming about how the dems are supporting terrorists and weaking the country.

maybe if they stopped using that as a litmus test??

Meh, and they screamed it anyway. Why should what a loud relative fringe of whackaloons choose to scream have any effect on actual governing? If it's not that they'll just scream about something else. Like Kenyan birth certificates. Hell with 'em.

The real deal is about pork, pork, pork.

 

[Missourian]

The Democrats had their shot...a super majority in Congress AND the Presidency.

Why didn't they cut the military's budget?

The only military related story I recall off the top of my head from the last two years is the Democrats FORCING the military to buy planes the Pentagon made clear the neither needed or wanted.

They didn't touch it for the same reason the Repubilcans won't, and they were wrong too. There's too much pork, too much patronage and too much emotion tied up in military expenditures.

can you imagine if the democrats tried to cut the military budget. i can just hear them screaming about how the dems are supporting terrorists and weaking the country.

maybe if they stopped using that as a litmus test??

You mean exactly like the Democrats are going to scream that Republicans hate the poor and minorities and want them to starve and die.

Pot, meet kettle.

 

[jillian]

They didn't touch it for the same reason the Repubilcans won't, and they were wrong too. There's too much pork, too much patronage and too much emotion tied up in military expenditures.

can you imagine if the democrats tried to cut the military budget. i can just hear them screaming about how the dems are supporting terrorists and weaking the country.

maybe if they stopped using that as a litmus test??

Meh, and they screamed it anyway. Why should what a loud relative fringe of whackaloons choose to scream have any effect on actual governing? If it's not that they'll just scream about something else. Like Kenyan birth certificates. Hell with 'em.

The real deal is about pork, pork, pork.

it shouldn't. but it does. and the dems are wusses for not punching the bullies in the face.

it is about pork. it's also about stupid policies... like cutting taxes during wartime and giving tax breaks for off-shoring.

corporate welfare is a killer.

 

[goldcatt]

can you imagine if the democrats tried to cut the military budget. i can just hear them screaming about how the dems are supporting terrorists and weaking the country.

maybe if they stopped using that as a litmus test??

Meh, and they screamed it anyway. Why should what a loud relative fringe of whackaloons choose to scream have any effect on actual governing? If it's not that they'll just scream about something else. Like Kenyan birth certificates. Hell with 'em.

The real deal is about pork, pork, pork.

it shouldn't. but it does. and the dems are wusses for not punching the bullies in the face.

it is about pork. it's also about stupid policies... like cutting taxes during wartime and giving tax breaks for off-shoring.

corporate welfare is a killer.

Corporate welfare is also mostly pork.

Earmarks are tiny, minuscule little bacon bits. The real pork is defense contracts and corporate handouts. All of those companies have headquarters somewhere, in somebody's district. And they all have millions in campaign money to dole out.

When pols have the golden opportunity to buy themselves campaign cash with somebody else's money, you honestly think they won't?

And yep, both parties do it. They just target different interests.